The Shack

I think many of us can relate to "shack experiences" where God is just more real than before. And I think that if we aren't careful we can get sucked into the idea that what is contained within the book "The Shack" is also true and good.
And so it is that I will state my opinion of this book.

1. "Sin is it's own punishment, devouring you from the inside. It's not my purpose to punish it; it is my joy to cure it." Now you might wish that was the case, but since when has God not punished sin? If He doesn't punish sin but only desires to cure it what on earth is hell for? God does heal but He is a God of justice and righteousness and simply "curing" without punishing is directly against His nature.
2. So, God shows up as a woman. Apparently this was because the man had a bad relationship with his Dad and couldn't view God as Father. But ultimately that boils down to, God called Himself Father. We can't change the attributes of God in order to make Him more acceptable. That's idolatry. We are making a God that suits us. God is who He is and we have a choice of two directions when we are confronted with that. Either we'll choose Him or our flesh... but we can not change Him to suit our flesh.
3. When we see what we percieve as a truth, that is not necessarily backed up Scripturally that should be carefully examined to see if it contradicts the Word of God and if it doesn't, it should be held as an opinion, not as a fact. I felt that too often in their effort to make God more real they did not search out the Scriptures and instead stated as facts that which is not within Scripture.

And now I will prepare to dodge the eggs and rotten tomatoes. Have yourself a lovely rest of the day!